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Home | Press Releases | Statement of Rodger Schlickeisen, President, Defenders of Wildlife, on Rally for the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge

Statement of Rodger Schlickeisen, President, Defenders of Wildlife, on Rally for the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge

Rally for the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge

(02/02/2005) - WASHINGTON -- "Thank you for coming out on a
bright, chilly day. This is Alaska caribou weather!

"This is a day to make some noise in protest against
George Bush's plan to essentially privatize the coastal plain of America's most
remarkable wildlife refuge. He is effectively proposing to privatize the Arctic Refuge by giving control of
it to Exxon and other Big Oil corporations. We need the president and his allies
to know that the American public doesn't want them to privatize our public
lands, and especially not the Arctic Refuge. We want the Senate to know that,
and we want the House of Representatives to know that.

"We want George Bush up Pennsylvania Avenue to
know.

"We want those outside the Beltway and across the
country to know.

"We want everyone from Florida to Alaska to
know.

"And it will help if a few key Senators, like those
from far off Hawaii, know that we don't want George Bush to privatize the Arctic
Refuge.

"And one more thing we want everyone to know: Those
who say we can't stop drilling in the Arctic Refuge this year are dead
wrong.

"With champions in Congress like Senator Lieberman
and Congressman Markey, and so many others, we know we will win this fight again
for the American people.

"Senator Lieberman, Congressman Markey and all of our
champions on Capitol Hill deserve our thanks for fighting so hard to stop George
Bush from privatizing the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Let's give them a
cheer that they'll hear all the way to Alaska!"

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Defenders of Wildlife is a leading nonprofit
conservation organization recognized as one of the nation's most progressive
advocates for wildlife and its habitat. With more than 480,000 members and
supporters, Defenders of Wildlife is an effective leader on endangered species
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Contact(s):

Brad DeVries, (202) 772-0237William Lutz, (202) 772-0269

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For all its unique beauty, the Arctic Refuge is under assault. The oil industry and its political allies continue to launch attacks to open this national treasure to destructive oil and gas drilling, while climate change threatens to disrupt its habitats faster than wildlife can adapt.

The Conservation Registry was developed by Defenders of Wildlife and partners to provide a simple, free web-based database and mapping system. The Conservation Registry visualizes on-the-ground conservation and wildlife investments.